freegan

I was helping my second-grader with his homework; he was reluctant to read a the little copy-printed book on bartering, saying, with full eye-rolls, that he'd already read it. So we read it together, and worked through the questions at the end. Suddenly his eyes lit up. "You and dad barter!" he...

In a lot of ways, dumpster diving represents the ultimate battle between thrift and dignity. Dirty, smelly, and quasi-legal, it is also a great way to save money, get great stuff, and learn about your neighbors on a whole new level. Although "trash reclamation" has probably been around since the...